Henry, 11 months

I love/like:

*chewing on my finger
*smiling and charming people (everyone agrees I'm a BIG flirt)
*MOMMY!
*finger foods, especially puffs, pasta pickups and of course BANANAS
*peek-a-boo
*standing and practicing my mad walking skills (still very premature)
*being tickled
*pretending to be a puppy by putting stuff in my mouth and shaking it
*playing with my socks
*crawling especially when you get down on the floor
*getting into rooms and toys I'm not allowed (though I behave a lot better then Ella or Grant)
*kicking and flailing in excitement
*that I have discovered that I am indeed a little boy
*talking, I'm really good at carrying on conversations
*anything to do with my feet: tickling them, blowing on them, telling me they stink
*when Toby gets close enough to touch
*being a drama king

I dislike:
*sleeping through the night
*when mama makes me eat "baby" food...I AM almost a toddler
*when I'm cranky and daddy tries to snuggle me-I want MAMA!
*not getting food first, I am liable to steal in those cases'
*when you don't come and sooth me right away in the middle of the night
*when you don't respond right away
*trying new foods

This month I have for the first time (some are the same at Ella's and Grant's):
*first full night without swaddling -May 23rd (man that feels like longer ago!)
*New foods consist mostly of finger foods as this is a skill mama is encouraging and I am LOVING: Earth's Best apple cereal bars (messy but YUM!), pasta pickups (OMG, where have you been all my life?), spaghetti (I make my typical sour face), and hotdogs (confusing to eat at first, can't eat them fast enough now)
*I ride on the swings for the first time (see this post)
*July 8th is the first time "at the pool"
*I got both of my top lateral incisors: the left on May 24th and the right on June 15th
*start giving kisses...the first one given to mama (she was delighted) on May 26th
*on May 27th I can start to wave HI
*I finally can move from laying to sitting and spend the whole day practicing
*on June 17th I pull to sitting in front of mama
*we begin using our Playtex straw sippy's all day except before bed and during night feedings on the 18th and then have our goat's milk in the sippy before bed on the 22nd
*we took our last ride in our infant car seats to church on the 19th
*we took our first ride in our convertible car seats to the office on the 21st, without toys they're a bit boring but on the plus side they have strap that is just perfect for chewing
*we enjoyed our first fast food meal, on a whim, at KFC. we loved the corn, mashed potatoes (sans gravy) and delicious chicken. mom and dad were embarrassed by the enthusiastic eating that produced quite the crazy mess. lighten up guys, there are 3 of us!

Wah! Mama is so far away...

Must stop to be "upset"

On my way again!

Working my made snack cup skills.

Splish, splash...we were taking a bath!!

Most of the time Evie's hugs are the best!

Standing is the BEST!


Crawl, sit, crawl, sit! Practice makes perfect!

This was my daddy's sweater-how cute am I ??

I'm a messy, messy boy and I like to throw dishes off the highchair so BEWARE!

Grant, 11 months

I like/love:

*laying on my back and talking
*getting into rooms and spots I'm not allowed
*playing piano
*screeching/screaming though thankfully for mama's sanity I am starting to love growling more
*standing
*rubbing my belly
*fake crying, throwing tantrums and generally trying to manipulate my mama and daddy
*mimicking everything: winks, clapping, sounds, facial expressions
*giving BIG smiles
*exploring toys: seeing how they feel, taste, and sound...I love especially our moving ball
*playing with my feet, rubbing my belly
*practicing yoga (see this post)
*splashing in the tub AND the dog bowl
*hanging upside down
*attacking the dog, he makes me giggle

I dislike:
*when Ella or Henry take things I REALLY want
*when Evie loves on me too hard
*being kept out of rooms I want to go in especially the bathrooms and mama and daddy's room
*napping longer then half an hour
*getting my face washed
*when Toby starts to bark a lot, even in play-it freaks me out
*when mama flips sheets onto the bed-also freaks me out

This month I have for the first time (some are the same at Ella's):
*first full night without swaddling -May 23rd (man that feels like longer ago!)
*New foods consist mostly of finger foods as this is a skill mama is encouraging and I am LOVING: Earth's Best apple cereal bars (messy but YUM!), pasta pickups (OMG, where have you been all my life?), spaghetti (gross-I spit it out), and hotdogs (confusing to eat at first, can't eat them fast enough now)
*I ride on the swings for the first time (see this post)
*July 8th is the first time "at the pool"
*I got both of my top lateral incisiors: the right on June 13th and the left on June 19th
*start giving kisses...the first one given to mama (she was delighted) on the 13th
*the 13th was a big day as I also pulled to standing up on the piano I love so much
*we begin using our Playtex straw sippy's all day except before bed and during night feedings on the 18th and then have our goat's milk in the sippy before bed on the 22nd
*we took our last ride in our infant car seats to church on the 19th
*we took our first ride in our convertible car seats to the office on the 21st, without toys they're a bit boring but on the plus side they have strap that is just perfect for chewing
*we enjoyed our first fast food meal, on a whim, at KFC. we loved the corn, mashed potatoes (sans gravy) and delicious chicken. mom and dad were embarrassed by the enthusiastic eating that produced quite the crazy mess. lighten up guys, there are 3 of us!

First time standing!

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.....boo-hoo"

Even I know that my belly is adorable.

Wearing my cousin Xander's outfit.

Trouble-making, despite my mama's many attempts at keeping us out of the dog dishes.

Doing what I do best...being absolutely adorable!

Working my mad snack cup skills.

I sure do a good job getting messy but I hate having it cleaned up.

Ella, 11 months

I like/love:

*moving (crawling, sitting, pulling up)
*clapping
*DADDY!
*things that roll
*making silly noises with my finger on my lips
*making a big mess "helping" feed myself
*splashing in the tub
*being sneaky, sneaky getting into rooms I'm not allowed
*"flying" and swinging
*eating, especially puffs, yogurt, crackers, finger foods
*sandal straps and dog toys
*exploring
*playing piano
*stealing food/toys from my siblings
*Uncle Doober
*staring at that gorgeous girl in the oven door reflection, showing "her" my toys and my awesome skills
*playing with "off-limit toys" like strings, cords-anything that could choke me is the funnest
*chewing on phones and remotes

One of mama's most recent favorites. Mmm-hmm *snap*

I hate:
*being thwarted
*not being fed on time
*napping
*when daddy doesn't pick me up
*not being able to get standing when and where I want

This month I have for the first time:
*first full night without swaddling -May 23rd (man that feels like longer ago!)
*I pulled to standing at the couch on May 28th (the only milestone mama missed-Boo!)
*claps also on the 28th
*New foods consist mostly of finger foods as this is a skill mama is encouraging and I am LOVING: Earth's Best apple cereal bars (messy but YUM!), pasta pickups (OMG, where have you been all my life?), spaghetti (I'm unimpressed either way), and hotdogs (confusing to eat at first, can't eat them fast enough now)
*I ride on the swings for the first time (see this post)
*July 8th is the first time "at the pool"
*start enjoying my own reflection
*start giving kisses...the first one given to amma A on July 10th. It's sloppy but I'm practicing.
*we begin using our Playtex straw sippy's all day except before bed and during night feedings on the 18th and then have our goat's milk in the sippy before bed on the 22nd
*we took our last ride in our infant car seats to church on the 19th
*we took our first ride in our convertible car seats to the office on the 21st, without toys they're a bit boring but on the plus side they have strap that is just perfect for chewing
*we enjoyed our first fast food meal, on a whim, at KFC. we loved the corn, mashed potatoes (sans gravy) and delicious chicken. mom and dad were embarrassed by the enthusiastic eating that produced quite the crazy mess. lighten up guys, there are 3 of us!

My silly faces.

Me giving mama some kisses. They are wet but oh so sweet.

Self-feeding attempt #1, this was enough clean-up that mama has yet to attempt #2.

I love to feed myself and here I am getting the hang of these snack cups.

Me and Uncle "Doober." He is absolutely fascinating...seriously could stare at him forever!

Even though I still have my mum, yours looks tasty too.

Making fun lip noises with Henry.

Despite mama's efforts I can easily get into areas I'm not allowed.

NOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok before we get to Ella can I just say that I am so NOT ready for my babies to be 1. And yet when I next post their updates they will indeed no longer be babies but "toddlers." Ugh, I don't think I will ever be able to call them that. It almost makes me what to vomit. I am so used to calling them "the babies" that collectively they will remain "my babies" even when they are in their 40's...ugh, another thought I can't stomach. Just had to get that out, and the following "NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Now I feel better, though still nauseated :o)

"Wordless Wednesday"

I'm wordless, Evie not so much! Again to see journaling click on the page. These were a few of her conversations/talkings from yesterday.

Dear Uncle Chris

We're anxious for your arrival, so we've been practicing. Come soon!!

My daddy is...

*a hard worker
*a good provider
*handsome
* our protector
*a gentleman
*playful
*silly
*smart
*a delicious maker of eggs, popcorn and meats.
*an encourager
*not afraid of answering the hard questions
*appreciative of our artwork
*the best at giving piggy back rides
*loves to laugh with us
*a good example


*THE BEST DADDY EVER!!!!!!

Our artwork for daddy...see all of our handprints? It says "You are our Hero!" because he is. Evie did the other work and it was painted on a real canvas!

We love you daddy!!!!!!! We are so thankful that God gave us you!

Inspired by

Taking inspiration from this post from one of my FAVORITE bloggers, Elizabeth Kartchner, Shawn and I took these pictures of the kiddos in our front "yard" under our one and only (but beautiful) tree. Aren't they spectacular!! One of my favorites of them thus far.






And just for fun we took one of Shawn too! This is one of the biggest reasons I am in love with this man...his sense of humor. He says that he loves me because I'm the only one that understands it. I find him hilarious. Love you, baby!!